Electoral registration and voting

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The most important piece of information we can give you is that before you vote, you must make sure you are on the electoral register.

The electoral register is a list of everyone who is registered to vote. Every year, the Electoral Registration Officer carries out a canvass to ensure that the electoral register for Renfrewshire is up-to-date. Thousands of residents fail to complete and return their canvass form and their names are removed from the register.

If you've moved house recently, you should check that you're registered to vote at your new address. Even if you pay Council Tax, you are not automatically registered to vote. Remember, no vote means no voice! Find out more about who can vote by clicking here.

To check that your name is on the register, ask in your local library or contact the Electoral Registration Officer, The Robertson Centre, 16 Glasgow Road, Paisley PA1 3QF (telephone: 0141 842 5922).

The Scottish Assessor's website has an area specifically for Renfrewshire where you can download forms for individual electoral registration or postal voting.

As a resident of Renfrewshire and Scotland, you can vote for local councillors, Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs), Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of the European parliament (MEPs). With all these different people to vote for, understanding what each one does can be puzzling!

In Renfrewshire there are 40 councillors elected to represent Renfrewshire. As well as this we have three constituency MSPs and seven regional MSPs for the West of Scotland region who sit in the Scottish parliament.

For central government we have two MPs and for the European parliament we have six MEPs representing us. Below you can find details about what each government or parliament does and its responsibilities.

• Local government - for example Renfrewshire Council, has responsibility for services including housing, education, social work.
• Scottish parliament - has responsibility for economic development, local government, health.
• Central government - is responsible for legislation, defence, employment, implementing government policies.
• European parliament - promotes social and economic progress among its members, foreign and security issues.

At the local level, Renfrewshire is divided into 11 wards, each of which elects a number of councillors as follows:

When you visit the polling station you will receive a ballot paper to elect your local councillors, where you have to show your choice by marking the candidates in order of preference eg. 1,2,3 etc.

For Scottish parliamentary elections, Renfrewshire is covered by the three constituencies of Paisley, Renfrewshire North and West, and Renfrewshire South. A single MSP is elected directly for each constituency using a first past the post system. In addition, the council area lies within the larger West of Scotland region which elects a further seven MSPs using a form of proportional representation.

When you vote you will receive two ballot papers, one containing the regional list of parties and individuals from which the seven regional MSPs will be elected and one showing the candidates for your constituency MSP. Here you will need to make a cross against your preferred party on one paper and a cross beside your preferred constituency candidate on the other paper.

For central government elections to the Westminster parliament, the Renfrewshire Council area is covered by the parliamentary constituencies of:

• Paisley and Renfrewshire North
• Paisley and Renfrewshire South

Each of these constituencies elects a single MP to represent their interests in the national parliament in Westminster.

Members of the European parliament (MEPs) are elected by proportional representation (PR). Instead of electing one person to one seat in each constituency, the UK is divided into regions, and several MEPs are elected from each region.

Scotland is treated as one region and returns six MEPs out of a total of 72 for the UK.

The PR system uses closed regional lists, where political parties put forward candidates within each region (the regional list). Individual candidates may also stand. Voters cast their vote either for a party or an individual candidate.

Find out more..
At the Vote Scotland website you can find out if you're eligible to vote, how to register to vote and all the different ways you can cast your vote.